Framed
by gamer4
Summary: When Ashfur is found dead, Lionblaze is the prime suspect. Now, murders are happening in all of the clans, always by the same cat, and Lionblaze must find the real killer and clear his name before it's too late. Rated for violence and murder.
1. Fallen Warrior

Gamer4 in. Well, I have nothing to say here.

Disclaimer: As much as I wish I owned Warriors, I don't.

Framed

Prologue

Fallen Warrior

As the sun sank on the clans one night, it left nothing in its wake to imply that anything strange or unusual might happen. Indeed, as Firestar gathered together the cats he was taking to the gathering, he was glad that they had such a clear night, aside from the gigantic clouds in the sky. But, they hadn't yet passed in front of the moon, so he didn't see any reason why anything should go awry during the night.

One of his grandchildren there, however, didn't share this comfortable notion. There were a couple things that were agitating her. One was that two of the chosen cats weren't here yet, though they were about ready to leave for the island. One was Ashfur, the other, Lionblaze. It wasn't like either of them to be late, let alone for a gathering, and their current absence didn't comfort her. Due to recent circumstances, she didn't care what happened to Ashfur, but Lionblaze was her brother, and she didn't want anything bad to happen to him.

No sooner had she completed this thought than Lionblaze ran down to them. "Sorry I'm late!" he called. "I was doing a bit of last-minute hunting." For some reason, he was covered in mud, stopping anyone from scenting anything from him.

"No luck?" Thornclaw asked, seeing that Lionblaze had no prey.

"No," Lionblaze said, not sounding happy about it. "I fell off a hill trying to catch a thrush, though."

"Did you see Ashfur?" Firestar asked. "We really need to get going."

"I didn't see him, no," Lionblaze said. "You mean he's not here yet? That's not like him."

"I know," Firestar said. "It _is _weird."

Graystripe looked over. "Maybe he just got tired of waiting," he said. "We might find him when we're halfway there."

"Could be," Firestar said. "In any case, we really need to get moving."

With this, he began leading them away down the hill. Hollyleaf glanced uneasily up at the stars. The clouds had yet to cover the moon, but she still had an ominous feeling in her. There were too many clouds in the sky to hope that one of them wouldn't pass in front of the moon eventually. Were their warrior ancestors still angry about Thunderclan's battle with Windclan, when the world had gone black?

Trying to shake these thoughts from her head, she continued on. Lionblaze seemed to have run ahead. Suddenly, she heard a loud cry.

Running ahead, she saw something that felt as if she had been waiting for it all night: a body was in the river that ran between Thunderclan and Windclan territory. From what she could see of it, it was clawed terribly, and obviously dead. The sight sent a chill down her spine, becoause, whatever she'd thought might happen that night, it wasn't this.

The body was Ashfur's.

Well, that's all for now. Sorry if it was a little short, but I couldn't really think of anything else to put in a prologue. Anyways, please R&R, flames will be ignored, but constructive criticism is fine. Gamer4 out.


	2. Opening Chapter

Gamer4 in. I don't have anything to say, so I'll just jump in.

Disclaimer: It's still painful, but I don't own Warriors.

Chapter 1

Opening Chapter

Lionblaze gaped, open-mouthed, at the body in the water. Whatever his feelings toward Ashfur had been lately, he hadn't wanted this. He looked over at Graystripe, the one who had cried out. He walked over to him. "Do you know who could have done this?"

"No," Graystripe said, his eyes wide.

Firestar walked up next to them, and his jaw dropped when he saw Ashfur's body in the water. Turning back to the cats behind him, he called out, "Leafpool! Jayfeather! We need you up here!"

Lionblaze watched as Leafpool and his brother, Jayfeather, padded up and showed their shock the same way Firestar and Graystripe had already done. "Take him back to camp," Firestar ordered.

Jayfeather, pulling the body out of the water, gasped slightly as he saw the mark on Ashfur's throat. "He was killed," he said, sounding more shocked than when he'd seen Ashfur dead.

"Who would do that?" Firestar asked, looking closer. Sure enough, there was a bloody mark across his neck.

"It was a cat," Leafpool said. "The mark's too neat to be made by anything else."

"You mean he was murdered?" Hollyleaf asked, getting closer. She had a look of horror on her face.

"Was it a clan cat?" Firestar asked.

"I can't tell right now," Leafpool said, looking at the wound.

"Could you tell if you could look closer?"

"Yes," Jayfeather said.

"Can you stay behind tonight, and try to find out who did this?"

"Yes," Jayfeather said, gently starting to drag him back. Leafpool followed.

After they left, Firestar took a moment to explain what had happened, then, noting that they were running late, led them off towards the island.

At the gathering, the most out-of-the-ordinary thing that happened was that Onestar asked Firestar why Thunderclan was late. Firestar said that there had been an incident with one of their warriors, and left it at that. None of the clans had anything interesting to report, except for Firestar, who was determined to say nothing about Ashfur.

As they returned to camp, Firestar headed over to the medicine den. Lionblaze, glancing over, saw Berrynose coming out of the medicine den. Berrynose looked in his direction as he walked by, giving him a look he couldn't identify. Firestar, coming out of the medicine den, jumped up onto the highledge, calling out, "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the highledge for a clan meeting!"

All the cats came out, looking up at Firestar. Leafpool and Jayfeather came out of the medicine den. "As some of you are probably aware of by now," Firestar called out, "Ashfur's body was found in a river along the Windclan border. He is dead."

"Was it a fox?" called out a voice Lionblaze recognized as Dustpelt's.

"The wound was too neat to belong to a fox or badger," Firestar declared. "And a fox would have eaten him. The only conclusion that can be drawn is that it was a cat."

"Windclan!" shouted Thornclaw, looking up at the leader. "They probably found him along the border and killed him!"

"Or Sol!" called out Mousefur. "I wouldn't put it past him!"

"We can't jump to conclusions," Firestar pointed out. "It may not have been either of them."

"It wasn't," said another voice. Everyone turned to see that the voice belonged to Berrynose. He didn't look happy.

"How can you know?" Thornclaw said, looking at him.

"Because," Berrynose said, "I know who _did _do it."

"Who?" Firestar asked, looking down.

Berrynose looked around at all of them before speaking. "The killer was Lionblaze."

That's all for now. Please R&R, flames are bad, constructive criticism is fine. Gamer4 out.


	3. A Prime Suspect

Gamer4 in. I have absolutely nothing to say. Yeah, you'd better get used to this.

Disclaimer: ...

Chapter 2

A Prime Suspect

It took a second for the full impact of these words to reach everyone in the clearing. Firestar was one of the first to recover. "That is a very serious accusation, Berrynose," he said, looking down at him, sounding like he was trying to stay calm. He was relatively successful. "What would make you say that?"

"Firestar, I don't like accusing him," Berrynose said. "Whatever happens next, just know that I am saying this because it's my duty." With this, he took one more breath, and began speaking. "Tonight, there were two cats that were late to the gathering. I know that because the group couldn't leave without them. One was Ashfur, the other was Lionblaze. This means that Lionblaze had the time to do it."

"I was hunting!" Lionblaze said, feeling some fear come up inside him. If the clan believed Berrynose, he would most likely be driven away. "Anyways, I can't be the only cat here who had the time."

"But, when you got back, you were covered in mud," Berrynose said. "That would hide the scent of death, in case anyone smelled it on you. It's only your word that you were hunting."

Lionblaze opened his mouth, then closed it. Berrynose didn't stop there. "And isn't it true that you had a slight disagreement not that long ago? Didn't you fight with Ashfur, during a sort of training session? You were found with your claws out. Whatever the fight was about, it would give you a reason to kill him."

Lionblaze was backing away slightly at this point. Now he understood why Berrynose had looked at him as he left the medicine den. "My scent wasn't on him, though!"

"The water from the river would have washed it away," Berrynose said, looking at him. "But the thing that made me start thinking about all of this was what was found in Ashfur's claws. A small amount of fur. _Your _fur."

Lionblaze looked at the crowd of cats around him. He was unnerved to see that several of them wore looks that seemed to say that to them, Berrynose's accusation made sense. Even Firestar was wearing an expression that said that he didn't like what he was hearing, but was being forced to accept it. Lionblaze swallowed nervously before looking at the clan. "I didn't kill him. Are there any of you that believe it?"

Jayfeather stood and walked over to Lionblaze. "Come on, Thunderclan," he said. "Do you really think that _Lionblaze _would do what you're accusing him of?"

"The evidence is overwhelming," Firestar admitted. "I'm afraid I have no choice but to believe it."

"I think it's worth pointing out that Jayfeather is Lionblaze's brother," Berrynose said. "I doubt that a medicine cat would be in on a murder like this, but he wouldn't be above keeping facts- like his brother's fur being caught in Ashfur's claws- secret if he thought it would keep Lionblaze from being persecuted."

"Is it true?" Firestar asked Jayfeather.

"It's true that Lionblaze's fur was in Ashfur's claws," Jayfeather admitted. "But that might have been there-"

"And isn't it also true that Lionblaze was the only cat to be late for the gathering, aside from Ashfur? And that he showed up covered in mud that would be very good in hiding a scent? And even further, true that Lionblaze had a fight with Ashfur not too long ago?"

"That's all true, but-" Jayfeather said, but was cut off again when Berrynose continued.

"The only conclusion that can be drawn from this is that Lionblaze killed him."

All the cats in the clearing looked to Firestar for the final judgement. He seemed to be choking on something as he looked down at them all. Finally, he managed to make a coherent sentence. "What Berrynose says makes sense. As little as I want to think that you might have done this, it makes sense. You need to be kept under guard tonight. I'll reach my final decision tomorrow."

Lionblaze felt as though his stomach had disappeared. Trying to hide his fear, he looked around the group. "Firestar," he said, "I didn't do it. You _have _to believe me!"

"I wish I could," Firestar said, looking down on him. "Berrynose, Dustpelt, please take him." With this, he turned away, like he didn't want to watch.

Lionblaze watched as the two warriors walked towards him. He started to back away. "Do _you _believe me, Dustpelt?"

"It's like Firestar said," Dustpelt said, looking at him, "it looks too much like you did."

Lionblaze made his decision in a couple of seconds. Without a word, he charged through the two warriors advancing on him, ran through the clan and towards the exit. He only looked back once. When he did, he saw that Firestar had turned around, and a look of shock was on his face as he saw Lionblaze running through the entrance, and away from the camp, and away from his life.

XXXX

A little after this, Firestar motioned for Berrynose to enter his den. "It seems you were right about Lionblaze," he said, looking like every word was costing him pain.

"Is there any point in telling me that?" Berrynose asked.

"I want Lionblaze back," Firestar answered. "If he is far away, he will be unable to answer for the crime. If he is gone, he can't tell us exactly why he did what he did. I'm arranging a group of cats to find Lionblaze and bring him back. Since you figured it out, I want you to lead it."

"If you want, Firestar," Berrynose said.

"Remember this, though," Firestar said. "Lionblaze might be outside the warrior code right now, but we need him alive so he can answer for the crime."

"You mean, you don't want him dead."

For a second, Firestar looked like he was struggling to swallow something, just like when he'd heard the evidence against Lionblaze. Finally, he spoke. "Just follow the orders."

"You can bet on it."

Well, that's all for now. Please R&R, constructive criticism is fine, flames are bad. Gamer4 out.


	4. On the Run

Gamer4 in. Not really anything to say here, aside from: Please forgive me for leaving this story alone this long.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Warriors, but it's unlikely I ever will.

Chapter III

On the Run

Lionblaze bounded away from the camp, without any clear destination in mind: for now, he just had to get away. Nothing was going through his mind except cold, bitter shock. He couldn't go back. Unless just one cat believed that he hadn't murdered Ashfur, he couldn't go back. But he had been telling the truth when he said he hadn't murdered him. He didn't know who did, but it hadn't been him. Whatever he was (and he was a lot of things) he wasn't a murderer.

_But who _did _do it then? _a tiny voice said in his head. But he didn't know. He didn't know who had done it, he didn't know why they would. Aside from himself, his littermates, and Squirrelflight, he hadn't had a quarrel with anyone in the clan. _Well, there are only two possibilities then, _the voice said. _Either it was one of them, or it was a cat from another clan._

At this point, he decided he'd gotten far enough away from camp to start walking, if not far enough away to rest. They were sure to try and catch him. He'd have to find a place to stay the night where they wouldn't find him. As he walked, he tried to think. Was it one of his littermates? Jayfeather had anger issues, but somehow, Lionblaze doubted he'd stoop to something like murder. Hollyleaf was obsessed with the warrior code, and the secret that Ashfur had learned, and threatened to reveal to the clans would have ruined that. Would she do it? But it was equally impossible. Even if he thought she had it in her, it was against the warrior code to kill.

Squirrelflight then? Well, there was a possibility. She wouldn't kill anyone if it was only herself in danger, he knew that much, but if she thought she was defending her adopted kits... Well, he couldn't be sure, but he'd have to keep it in mind.

A cat from another clan, or a cat outside the clans? That seemed likely. The clans weren't exactly at the height of joy at each other right now. The thought occurred to him that Mousefur might have been right: maybe Sol did it. But that didn't seem likely. Sol was a lot of things, and Lionblaze was definitely unhappy with him at the time, but killing wasn't his style. It was possible, but he doubted it.

Naturally, the idea of rogues killing him seemed likely, but he couldn't tell. As he walked on, still with no clear direction, he realized that he knew next to nothing about how the murder had actually happened. He only knew that his fur had been caught in Ashfur's claws, and that Ashfur had been murdered.

It was very late when he finally decided where he was going to go. He had nothing to do now, except try to find out who the killer had been. He knew where the murder had happened: a river near the Windclan border. The thought occurred to check for scents, but then he came to his senses: there would be no helpful scents there, not after Thunderclan had passed through it twice. Eventually, he knew, he'd have to go back to Thunderclan, if only to talk with Jayfeather, who had looked over the body, and might have more clues. But he needed a place to stay tonight.

Looking around, he realized that he recognized the spot. He was close to the entrance to the caves that he had discovered so many moons earlier. He walked over to the spot. Only he and a couple others knew about the spot. If he went deep enough in, and was lucky enough, the clans wouldn't be able to find him. He checked the sky, knowing how terrifying the tunnels could become when it was raining, and was happy to see the sky was clear of clouds. He went in, and didn't stop his traveling until he was sure he was too deep for any sane clan member to follow. Of course, he wasn't exactly happy about it either, but there was nowhere else. He lay down and closed his eyes. It wasn't as comfortable as his nest back home, but he couldn't sleep there. He began to try to sleep.

XXXX

Back at the camp, Jayfeather was speaking with Hollyleaf. "You're absolutely sure that it was his fur?" she asked.

"I can only go by scent," Jayfeather said, looking around camp. "And I've slept with him since birth. Yes, it was him."

"But do you think he killed Ashfur?"

"No. He's not capable of that."

"But who did , then?"

"I don't know. There's no way for me _to _know. We can only hope he stays away so he doesn't get caught."

"Who are you talking about?" said Berrynose's voice.

"Lionblaze," Jayfeather said, looking at him and feeling anger stir in him. "I can promise you, Berrynose, Lionblaze wouldn't murder Ashfur like that!"

"Then why was his fur in Ashfur's claws? Why does all the evidence point towards it?"

"I don't have all the answers," Jayfeather said.

"It doesn't matter," Berrynose said. "I just wanted to ask you something."

"What do you want to know?" Hollyleaf asked, feeling an anger similar to Jayfeather's.

"You don't know where Lionblaze is hiding by any chance, do you?" Berrynose asked.

"No," Jayfeather said. "I couldn't tell you. All I can be sure of is that he won't leave, not until he finds the real killer."

"Well, let's hope so," Berrynose said. "Firestar's given me and some other cats the job of finding him."

With this, Berrynose turned and left. Jayfeather felt a bit of fear inside him: he wasn't joking when he said that Lionblaze probably wouldn't leave. "Meet me in the medicine den in the morning," he said, heading there. Silently, he prayed to Starclan that Lionblaze wouldn't get caught.

And that's all for now. Please R&R, constructive criticism is fine, flames are bad, Gamer4 out.


End file.
